OBJECTIVE: To determine pre-intervention seroprevalence, drug usage, daily activities, sexual behaviors, and AIDS attitudes among street intravenous drug users (IVDUs) in Long Beach, Calif. METHODS: Personal interviews were conducted with 325 street IVDUs (66% male, 34% female) between June and September 1988; 44% were white, 35% black, 16% Hispanic, and 5% Asian/other. HIV-antibody serostatus was obtained on 193 persons. RESULTS: Drugs commonly injected were heroin (75%), cocaine (34%), speedballs (28%), and amphetamines (13%). Needles were shared by 88%. Seventy percent of IVDUs said they cleaned their works at least three-fourths of the time. Of those cleaning, 73% reported using bleach or alcohol and 27% using water alone. Forty-two percent reported having non-IVDU sex partners, and 18% said the partner did not know of their drug use. Thirty-eight percent of IVDUs were prostitutes or had traded sex for drugs. Seventy percent of IVDUs rated good health as highly important. Sixty-one percent had been in a drug-treatment program at some time (40% within the prior nine months). Ten (5.2%) of the 193 persons tested for HIV-antibody were seropositive (nine males, one female). There was no difference between the proportion of homosexual/bisexual vs. heterosexual males with respect to serostatus. HIV serostatus, sexual orientation, or whether one was a prostitute bore no significant relationship to reported degree of concern about AIDS or change in sexual behavior because of AIDS. CONCLUSION: The large number of IVDUs who indicated health was of high personal importance, who cleaned needles with bleach/alcohol, and who reported recent drug treatment suggests this population will be receptive to targeted AIDS-prevention efforts.
